The main focus of the contributions in this collection is the production of cultural memory regarding Dante and Milton. The juxtaposition and comparison of the two authors invites a broader perspective that goes beyond merely national contexts as it touches on the question of the emergence of a European Dante and a European Milton. At the same time, the comparison of both allows for an exploration of various processes, namely of appropriating, forgetting and side-lining parts of their histories and politics – processes which the works and legacies of both authors have been subjected to throughout their literary and cultural reception.
Christoph Lehner studied at the universities of Regensburg, Pisa, and Florence and at Queens’ College, Cambridge. In 2015, he finished his dissertation on “Depicting Dante-Allegory, Authority and Authenticity in Anglo-Italian Literary and Visual Arts”, and published several articles on Dante’s reception in Britain. He currently works as a lecturer in English and Italian.